I bought this scarf over a year ago because it was $3 (!!!) and little did I know how much I'd be wearing it. It completes a look so easily and really dresses up the jeans and a tee uniform. Gotta love how easy that is! (Worn on the blog so far here and here. And many more times off the blog...)

Do you have pieces in your wardrobe that have surprised you like that?

Hello, Monday! I'm coming at you today with a spring dress in full force, complete with bright colors all around. (I was even going to wear my orange UO pumps but decided to save that for another day.) You see, in style blog land, it's winter, but in reality for me it's been 75-80 degrees for a week. Last Friday I decided to stop pretending it was fall and embraced the warmth with this outfit.

I did a look for cooler weather with this dress, too, for all of you who are yearning for spring but have a ways to go before it arrives.

I love dresses with tights and boots! And it's such an easy way to make a springy dress wearable before spring hits. With the warm weather down here, I haven't gotten to wear this combo as much as I would have liked to.

I love that this dress has so many colors to pull from and use in accessories and cardigans/jackets. It gives it an endless amount of remixing possibilities!

Thursday, January 26, 2012

Besides not having to worry about getting caught by the neighbors, I'm liking the indoor pics because the colors come out more accurate. Enough picture talk, though. Hardly the point of this blog!

I feel kinda smart and preppy in this outfit. I'm not much for layering an unopened sweater (like, non-cardigan type thing) over a button-up. I've tried it before but never made it out of the house because I felt like I had to tug and pull everything back into its neat little place if I ever moved. (Is that not true for the rest of you? How do you do it? Tell me your secrets!) This sweater isn't as fit so it worked well for layering. Pairing it with a button down denim shirt and topping it off with oxfords was a great way to go about a rainy day earlier this week.

Wednesday, January 25, 2012

I almost gave up on these jeans, but style blogs saved them. I always wore them uncuffed, and they were my go-to casual jeans until an amazing pair of skinny jeans entered the picture. Soon enough it was bye-bye for these jeans. Then I noticed bloggers rolling jeans similar to these for a kind of "boyfriend jean" type look, and whaddya know? These jeans were revived, just like that. It's amazing how rolling your pants a little here and there can open up more possibilities.

I love wearing them rolled now, casually with flats or mixing casual and fancy with heels and a statement necklace. Wearing a typically casual type of jean with heels is something I never think to do, but I keep pinning those looks (1, 2, 3) so I'm trying to remind myself to do in hopes that it becomes natural to me. This outfit is different for me, but it's fun to break outside my norm! (That's part of the reason I started this blog anyway, isn't it?)

Tuesday, January 24, 2012

Remember how in my last post I mentioned getting caught by the neighbors while taking outfit pics? It happened. Again. For the second day in a row. This time, by the gardener. Bah! After I exercised my lying skills again, he got self-conscious that I would snap pictures of him though I promised I wouldn't. Since he was working out there for quite a while, indoors it was for me.

My mom used to comment on how I wore too much black and other dark colors, which is still up for debate, in my opinion. But really, who cares? Even if she was right, I LOVE black! I've had her voice in the back of my mind steering me away from black, but I'm just going to embrace it. When I put on this top I was reminded of how much I love black. This black blouse is soooo easy and effortless, but I don't feel like a schlump. And that's always a good thing.

Monday, January 23, 2012

Happy Monday! We're starting the week with stripes on stripes. I'm glad I bought this striped cardigan because it makes an outfit more interesting than, say, a plain navy cardi, while still being a little subdued and not too in-your-face.

Umm, and I definitely got caught by a wandering neighbor while taking these pictures. And by "caught" I don't just mean that they saw me. I mean they confronted me and asked what I was doing. Awk.ward. Luckily, my impeccable lying and decent acting skills helped me skirt the awkwardness. Let's not repeat that, though.

Friday, January 20, 2012

Glasses!!! These are the glasses I ordered from GlassesUSA and while my first choice was unavailable, I'm happy with these too. They fit perfectly, which was a concern I had with ordering online. And the best part is that I can see clearly in my periphery. You might not be able to tell in these pictures, but my eyes are BIG. Trust me. My friend nicknamed me "fish eyes," and in high school another friend used to get 3 inches away from me, stare intently at my face and ask, "Can you possibly make your eyes ANY BIGGER?" And I've been told I look like an anime or cartoon character on more than one occasion.* These pictures lie. My eyes are huge. And because of that, I couldn't see in my peripheral vision with my old frames so I never wore them. So silly. Now, I can see! Plus, these glasses are the perfect accessory to nerd up this gingham look!

Whether for legit vision reasons or just for fun, are you into glasses as an accessory?

*It's okay, you can laugh. I like my eyes, and I think it's funny that my friend nicknamed me "fish eyes" because it's true! Sometimes I see candid pics of myself and think "OMG, my eyes are going to pop out of my head..." Laughing at yourself sometimes is good for you. :)

Wednesday, January 18, 2012

Question time! How long does it typically take you to decide that you're going to get rid of something in your closet? Every week or so my husband names a handful of items that he's planning to rid his closet of, and it seems like he decides it all in 30 seconds. His minimalist tendencies keep his closet pretty trim already, so sometimes I worry that he'll very soon have no clothes.

Wearing this dress made me ask the question because I was (and maybe still am) <--this--> close to getting rid of this dress because this shade of red isn't my favorite for me. I think it looks fine, but it's not something I'm itching to wear everyday and therefore don't know if it should be in my closet. But thanks to some previous bad shopping habits I bought TWO dresses in this color family a few years ago. (Darn you, sales!) I'm all for purging things from my closet, but I take much longer than 30 seconds to decide it. The hardest is when it's something that's still in great condition and well made but that I just don't reach for in my closet. Maybe if I had a little online store to sell pieces like this and know they'll land in good hands it will cut down my indecision. Maybe? Maybe someday.

Tuesday, January 17, 2012

Not much to say today...except that I'm 99% sure Alex Dunphy wore this top on a recent episode of Modern Family. I don't know whether to be proud or ashamed to be wearing the same shirt as a 14 year old. Okay, not really. I don't really care because no matter what, I love this shirt. I was actually more amused that wardrobe stylists for Modern Family shopped at Target. Can you blame them, though? Of course not, because Target is adult Disneyland, so why wouldn't you make every excuse to go there?

Monday, January 16, 2012

This weekend I tackled a lot of the things on my to-do list that I've been looking at and saying I'll do "later." And by "later," I really mean, "when the little elves magically appear and do it for me." But, I did them, and it felt so dang good. Sorry, elves. On top of clearing out most of my to-do list, this weekend we hiked the highest point in San Diego, enjoyed a few meals with great friends, and tried this chocolate chip cookie recipe which is resulting in us breaking records for number of cookies eaten in one sitting. The only way to get me to stop is to brush my teeth. I love that trick.

And I did none of that in this outfit, which is from Friday. I'm proud to have found another use for this tweed jacket because I wouldn't want to have to give up my first thrifting find ever--and such a great one. Don't ask me how I managed to wear dresses for years without ever having worn one with a blazer, but I'm glad I finally learned that trick too. Blazers + dresses = fantastic.

Thursday, January 12, 2012

Here you go, my weekend wear. I mentioned a few posts ago that I wear this grey tee almost every weekend, so I thought it was time to put it on the blog...especially since it is one of the simple outfits I fear posting. I feel so lazy throwing on a plain tee and blazer, but I actually love, love, love a blazer + tee + skinny jean outfit. It's one of my favorite outfits to wear and that I see on others. And it's so easy that it feels like cheating!

This tee is also one of my husband's all time favorite things I wear, even sans blazer. A plain tee and skinny jeans? Why do I bother trying so hard to come up with cute outfits when the man is so easily pleased? Lesson learned from this week: Simple or easy does not have to equate to boring or uninspiring. (Your encouraging comments this week have really helped drill that into my head--THANK YOU!) In fact, an easy outfit that still looks cute just means you're beating the system, and beating = winning. So really, easy = winning. Winning!

Wednesday, January 11, 2012

I'm 4 for 4 in outfits with stripes. This is another one of the simple outfits from the 75-80 degree weather last week, hence the bare arms. When I think of simple outfits done well, I think of Linda from Little Tin Soldier, and I like to think I was channeling her in this outfit. Clean lines without a lot of embellishment or fuss, making it pop with some color.

This top is new, and I liked it so much that I was willing to pay the full $30 for it--more than I tend to pay for most garments. I've taken to stripes over the last half a year, after being enlightened to how versatile they are. Before, I thought striped shirts were plain, boring, and a waste of money, but maybe it's because *I* was boring and lacked the imagination to utilize a striped shirt in all of its glory. Oooh, yeah. Just got a little deep there. I kid. But really, it's kinda true.

Tuesday, January 10, 2012

Good thing I took these pictures before I brushed my teeth and dripped toothpaste on my black dress. What? Adults still do that? Yes, those of us who sometimes still have the toothbrushing skills of a 3 year old. Raise your hand if you're in that club with me.

So, you know how the word on the street is that, "Black and brown are acceptable again!" I think I'm really out of the fashion trends because I never even knew it was faux pas in the first place. Or I must have been way ahead of the game because I was wearing black and brown together since...always. Let's go with the latter, shall we? Who makes up these crazy rules, anyway? This is a casual look with black and brown, but on my Pinterest board there are a few looks that are just so chic with black and brown. (See 1, 2 especially, and 3, 4 are a little more casual.) If those outfits don't get you on board, I don't know what will.

Sunday, January 8, 2012

Sorry for being so quiet on the posting front last week. You know those days when you just don't feel like getting dressed, but you do it anyway because you don't want to get arrested? I'd say most of last week felt like those days. Even though it was a beautiful 75-80 degrees all week, I reluctantly got dressed. Thankfully, colorful pants and a structured jacket are wonderful disguises for reluctance and make it look like you put forth some effort. Colored pants are a great alternative to typical jeans, and a structured jacket pulls together any look.

Sometimes I hesitate to post what I think are simple outfits, but that's how my outfits were all last week. And I'm going to post them. Mostly to defeat the little monster that style blogging can create in me that makes me feel like I have to have a "special" outfit, which doesn't make sense anyway, because pretty much all my outfits are simple, really. When I feel that little monster creep up and I find myself standing in front of my closet way too long, I have to snap myself out of it by telling myself, "Just wear some clothes and get on with your life!" Silly, but true. Just being real, peeps.

On another note, my GlassesUSA.com order came over the weekend and I can't believe how well the virtual mirror worked! These glasses fit! A few of you mentioned numbers 1 and 4, which were also my top choices. The first option was my first choice, but they were sold out, so I got #4. If you follow me on Twitter, you saw that I posted a pic on Instagram.

Alright, longer entry than usual, but I'm heading off to church now. Enjoy the rest of your Sunday!

Tuesday, January 3, 2012

My outfit was stolen from inspired by the lovely and fashionable Kristina J. I found it while stalking her archives, stumbling upon these outfits. I had all intentions of replicating it with a red skirt that I thrifted a few months ago, never hemmed (story of my life), and didn't know how to style. Most red skirt inspirations I found involved grey or lace and cream and were very sweet and pretty, but I didn't feel like those represented my style. I absolutely love the boldness Kristina's outfit has with the striped cardigan, a graphic tee, and a sturdy bag and boots. I had the red skirt on, but at the last minute I went with yellow. While it doesn't solve my problem of still not knowing how to style my red skirt, I've gotta say that I love this outfit.

One thing you should know about this outfit--a warning, if you will--is that it attracts men like white on rice. Okay, maybe that's not a warning to some of you, rather, a secret key. :) I dunno what it is, but guys were turning on the flirting hardcore, even as I tried to walk away. On two separate occasions, flashing my wedding ring was what finally put an end to it. It was mostly in good humor, and thankfully nothing creepy, but all I could think was, "Is there some magic potion in this outfit or something?" Single ladies, who knows? This outfit could change your life. ;)

Monday, January 2, 2012

I hope you all had wonderful times ringing in the new year! I don't have a sparkly NYE outfit to show you because B and I opted out of parties and bars to have a chill evening at home with steak dinner and a movie. I have no regrets.

Instead, here's an outfit from the earlier in the weekend. My husband gave this tote to me for Christmas. I'm on the go a lot or traveling, so I often have quite a load to carry, but the previous totes I've used have been inexpensive and couldn't cut it. Since I broke a record in discovering new ways you could break a tote, B decided around my birthday last year that it was time to invest in a quality tote for me. He had my friends pitch in for one as a birthday present, but when I found out how much it cost I couldn't bare the thought the money could have been used on so many other things. I made him return it.

But for the next few months I kept mentioning how my bags were breaking, and B regretted returning that tote ever since my birthday. He insisted that I let him give me a good tote for Christmas, and here it is. This is well made and the leather is buttery, and I believe it'll last for a while. As much as I kick and scream about it, sometimes you do just have to invest in quality. I'm learning!

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